The protests have been organized by supporters of cleric Muqtada Sadr against second planned Holy Quran burning in Sweden within weeks.
BAGHDAD: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-July 20th, 2023) In the early hours of Thursday morning, a large group of protesters in central Baghdad stormed the Swedish embassy, scaling its walls and setting it on fire in response to a desecration of Holy Quran in Sweden.
Baghdad embassy staff were reported safe, as stated by the Swedish foreign ministry press office.
The ministry condemned the attack and urged Iraqi authorities to take measures to protect diplomatic missions.
The demonstration was organized by supporters of cleric Muqtada Sadr, who were outraged by the second planned Holy Quran burning in Sweden within weeks. This information was shared through posts in a popular Telegram group linked to the influential cleric and other pro-Sadr media.
Muqtada Sadr is a prominent figure in Iraq with a massive following. He has previously mobilized hundreds of thousands of supporters, who have taken to the streets, including a past incident where they occupied Baghdad's heavily-fortified Green Zone, leading to deadly clashes.
According to reports from the Swedish news agency TT, Swedish police had granted permission for a public meeting outside the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm on Thursday. The application for the meeting explicitly mentioned the intention to burn Holy Quran and the Iraqi flag.
Videos posted on the Telegram group "One Baghdad" showed people gathering around the embassy around 1 am on Thursday and chanting pro-Sadr slogans. Approximately an hour later, they stormed the embassy complex, chanting in support of the holy Quran.
The authenticity of these videos could not be independently verified by Reuters.
Following the incident, Iraq's foreign ministry also condemned the attack and pledged to conduct a swift investigation to identify and hold the perpetrators accountable. By dawn on Thursday, security forces had deployed inside the embassy, and firefighters were working to extinguish remaining embers.
Late last month, Muqtada Sadr called for protests against Sweden and the expulsion of the Swedish ambassador after the previous Holy Quran burning incident in Stockholm, where an Iraqi man was responsible.
The Swedish police charged the man with agitation against an ethnic or national group, and he identified himself as an Iraqi refugee seeking to ban the Quran.
After that Quran burning, there were two major protests outside the Swedish embassy in Baghdad, during which protesters breached the embassy grounds on one occasion.
Various Muslim countries, including Iraq, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, and Morocco, expressed their concerns about the incident. Iraq sought the man's extradition to face trial in their country. The United States also condemned the Quran burning but clarified that Sweden's issuance of the permit was in support of freedom of expression and not an endorsement ofh the action.
